layman

[ ley-muhn ]

noun

, plural lay·men.

1. a person who is not a member of the clergy; one of the laity.
2. a person who is not a member of a given profession, as law or medicine.

layman

/ ˈleɪmən /

noun

1. a man who is not a member of the clergy
2. a person who does not have specialized or professional knowledge of a subject

   science for the layman

Gender Note

See -man.

Word History and Origins

Origin of layman¹

Middle English word dating back to 1150–1200; lay ³, man

Example Sentences

Perhaps anyone could guess as much, but what a layman might never know without Stanford’s book is that our busy roads severely circumscribe the territory cougars can roam, leading to isolation and inbreeding.

From Los Angeles Times

To the layman, a self-propelled howitzer looks like a tank, but it has a bigger, 155mm gun to fire at longer range.

From Salon

Worms do not eat brain tissue, experts say, but the idea is a non-medical or layman's understanding of what parasites might do if they enter the central nervous system.

From BBC

The fourth man identified at the meeting was former Member of Parliament Pavlo Unguryan, a layman who may be one of Ukraine’s most influential evangelical Christians.

From Salon

Thirty-six years ago, Gary Brinson cracked open Stephen Hawking’s “A Brief History of Time,” a bestseller in which the renowned physicist sought to explain the mysteries of the universe in layman’s terms.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• parishioner

More About Layman

What does layman mean?

Layman is used in a religious context to refer to a person who is a regular member of a religious congregation and not a member of the clergy—that is, a layman is someone who is not a religious official like a priest.

The term clergy collectively refers to people who have been ordained or otherwise serve as religious leaders or officials, such as priests, rabbis, and nuns. People who are not part of the clergy can be called laypeople or collectively referred to as the laity.

Layman and its plural form laymen specifically refer to men but are often used regardless of gender. However, the truly gender-neutral term layperson is also commonly used.

Layman is perhaps even more commonly used outside of a religious context to refer to a person who is not a member of a particular profession or who is not an expert in or knowledgeable about a particular field. This sense of the word is used in the phrase layman’s terms, which means plain language that the average person can understand, as opposed to technical jargon that can only be understood by experts in the topic or those who are already familiar with it.

When someone asks for an explanation in layman’s terms, they want it to be as simple and straightforward as possible, so that it can be understood by laymen—nonexperts.

Example: She has built a career as a science writer by explaining complex topics in a way that is accessible to the layman.

Where does layman come from?

The first records of the word layman come from the 1100s. The lay in layman is an adjective meaning “belonging to, pertaining to, or performed by the people or laity, as distinguished from the clergy.”

Lay comes from the Middle English lai, meaning “uneducated” or “not belonging to the clergy.” It ultimately comes from the Greek lāikós, meaning “of the people” (as in the common people).

Did you know ... ?

What are some other forms related to layman?

• laymen (plural)

What are some synonyms for layman?

• layperson
• member of the laity
• average person
• nonexpert

What are some words that share a root or word element with layman? 

• laywoman
• laypeople
• lay
• man
• laity
• clergyman

What are some words that often get used in discussing layman?

• terms
• simple
• plain
• language
• average
• person
• expert
• jargon
• clergy
• member
• congregation
• general
• audience

How is layman used in real life?

Layman is perhaps most commonly used in non-religious contexts. It’s especially common in the phrase layman’s terms.

do i make my art painfully obvious and heavyhanded for the layman or do i make it secret, mysterious and complex to impress my peers…..

— plæst[이]k (@plaest2k) September 29, 2020

For the layman, SAML is the backbone of most corporate SSO solutions. One logon for all resources. If an adversary compromises it, they can pretend to be anyone and access anything. https://t.co/wKGoFWYLR2

— The Cyber (@r0wdy_) December 15, 2020

Thanks to #UTMB — a world leader in developing treatments and vaccines for infectious diseases — for explaining in layman's terms how the COVID-19 vaccines work. #UTinServicetoTexas https://t.co/XAMQbPvW2N

— UT System (@utsystem) January 6, 2021

Try using layman!

Which of the following terms can be used as a synonym of layman?

A. layperson
B. nonexpert
C. member of the laity
D. all of the above